Reuters – World stocks pushed up to 9-month highs on Friday, cutting demand for government bonds as euro zone manufacturing and services reports beat expectations, fuelling optimism about economic recovery.

The euro hit a session high against the dollar and European shares reversed earlier losses to climb for a 10th session running after a better-than-expected German sentiment survey and improved data on the euro zone services and manufacturing sectors.

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Reuters – World stocks steadied on Friday but were still on track for a sixth consecutive week of gains, while the euro fell on worries about the region’s prospects.

MSCI‘s main world stock index was flat despite modest gains in Europe and a rebound in Japan. But the index was up 1.6 percent on the week, gaining around 28 percent since a March 9 low.

U.S. financial services firm State Street said evidence was building that big investors were buying into the rally, particularly in U.S. and emerging market stocks.

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Wall Street & Technology – Global investors boosted their equity holdings for the second month running in December and cut bonds, thanks to signs of stabilising stock markets and tumbling government bond yields, Reuters polls showed on Monday.

Surveys of 44 leading investment houses in the United States, Japan, continental Europe and Britain showed an average mixed-asset portfolio holding 56.0 percent in stocks, up from 54.8 percent in November. However, it still remained below the long-term average holding of almost 60 percent.

Bond holdings fell to 33.0 percent in December from 34.3 percent the previous month, above the long-term average of around 32 percent.

Cash rose to 5.4 percent from 5.3 percent.

A rise in the respondents’ equity holdings comes as world stocks, measured by MSCI, rose nearly 20 percent after hitting a 5-1/2 year low on November 21.

A round of central bank interest rate cuts worldwide and the introduction of fiscal stimulus packages in major developed and emerging economies have helped convince many investors that stock markets might bottom before long.

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